Due to the changes made to his timeline, after his older self and Marty McFly used the Rocket-powered car to apprehend Irving "Kid" Tannen, Emmett attracted the attention and interest of Edna Strickland. The two went to see The Virtuous Husband instead. This lead to the 1986G timeline.

Determined to set things straight, Marty along with the aid of Citizen Brown sought to return to 1931 on August 26. Due to the malfunction of the time circuits, they arrive on October 12 of that year. Regardless, Marty attempted to convince Emmett to see Frankenstein in hopes of him going back to his original scientific path. Though Emmett still didn't see the movie, he was inspired that night after seeing a bolt of lightning while on top of the Hill Valley Courthouse. Though whether Emmett still saw the movie at any point of his life is unknown.

Also on October 12, Citizen Brown tested out the time circuits only to reappear earlier in the day. To avoid running into his other selves, he hid out in the theater to watch the film. Despite not being too impressed, he mentioned that he could see how the movie would have been inspirational to his younger self.